Drugi jezik na kojem je dostupan ovaj članak: Bosnian
To make it clear from the very beginning: I’m a mountain type of guy. I go to the seaside because of my family and friends. As for myself, sea holidays could be abolished. I would swap three summer vacations for a decent seven-day skiing holiday! But until this happens, here I am at the seaside. Ekrem found me here, among the palm trees and olive trees of the Greek island of Thasos.
So, my next trait is that I’m an early family holiday maker. This means that my sea season begins early in June, as soon as the children finish their school year. We – I and a couple of friends – were lucky to have our children within a year or two of each other, so now our children have made an even closer bond between us. I’m sure that many good parents plan their travels with small children, not by the number of stars on the hotel, but by making sure their children have their own company. Only if your children play with their peers, is there a chance that you might also enjoy your vacation. These June summer vacations with a lot of kids, almost always in the region of Northern Greece, are mainly meant exactly for that – vacation. The children are eager for the sea, you get there quickly by car, and the sister in law who lives in Thessaloniki gets a regular visit.
Going to the seaside in June is good for several reasons. It’s not too hot and there are no suffocating crowds of tourists. In addition, your summer lasts longer, because you make yourself finish all the important jobs in the agency early, so when you come back it’s already July.
Summer vacations are also a good measurement of your management skills. If your phone is ringing all day, and you are always finishing or approving something in your swimwear, then you failed the June exams. I’m lucky that I’m now surrounded by such strong professionals in my work, that I’m only now turning on my laptop on the tenth day of vacation, and I’m doing that for the sake of Ekrem. As for business calls, I only had three, and those were from people who don’t follow me on Facebook so they didn’t know that I was away. Nothing urgent, nothing important – that’s our slogan at the agency when we say goodbye to go on vacation.
After several turbulent years, this is an extremely relaxed holiday for me. I have no unfinished projects, only a lot of new ideas and development plans. The beginning of the year was excellent, and after several lean years, this one will show serious business growth. We have already made agreements with a number of new clients and major projects for the autumn.
As for Thasos, this is my second time here after nearly a quarter of a century. With the passage of time over these 45 + years, some destinations are starting to be revisited, and first memories significantly change. In November I was in New York, also after a quarter-century, and somehow it seemed smaller and dirtier, and more boring than when I was there with only 21 years under my belt. In the same way Thasos now looks like a miniature of the Thasos in the nineties. Even more interesting is the detail by which I remember it. A Coca-Cola fridge on the main street, which then held a huge fascination for me, and now people laugh when I tell it. So, this feat of engineering, this illuminated space shuttle, full of cold, colorful cans, with so many possibilities, for so little money, is the strongest memory I carried with me from this island for a quarter of a century. This fridge was the first thing I saw when I got off the ferry and entered the free world outside the Serbia of the nineties under sanctions. When you go from Belgrade in an old Yugo, and refuel somewhere near Vranj from a canister, and when you write checks to buy a burger at a kiosk, then a fridge full of colorful opportunities makes the impression of the year, which I remember to this day.
This year’s Thasos I will remember for the African heat in June, and a completely unusual book about jinn and jinnias by Salman Rushdie. So many imaginary concepts, woven into a sustainable communication plot with an educational dimension – something I haven’t seen in a long time. Phantasmagoria, hallucinations or masterful inspiration, there’s everything in Salman Rushdie’s Two Years, Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights. I’m waiting for Ksenija – who has now taken over the book – to give her verdict. Just to see how she will digest it. Ah yes, I will also remember it for the fact that I mustered my courage and experimented with seafood as never before. As a Dinaric type I somehow always preferred the continental offer of pig and lamb to all the wonders of the deep sea. But behold, I am opening up to new tastes and experiences, and with Thasos, I close my first round of tourism.